Longtime readers of this blog may already be aware of The Crap Mantle. But here's a quick refresher course so we're all on the same page: The Crap Mantle is an in-season anti-title, passed from one losing team to the next. It begins with the club that suffers the season's first loss, and then passes to any team that loses to that team, and so on and so on until the season ends, and one team ends, shamefully, as the keeper of The Crap Mantle.
Last year, it was the Boston Bruins. LOL.
But it's a new season, which means a new path for The Crap Mantle. Who has it right now?
Reader crystal240 has been tracking The Crap Mantle through the season's first month, and on Tuesday, she gave us an important update: the Ottawa Senators are the present holders of the crap mantle, having picked it up in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes.
And their next opportunity to rid themselves of the anti-title comes Thursday, when they play host to... the Vancouver Canucks.
That's right. If the Canucks lose Thursday, they have The Crap Mantle. The stakes couldn't be higher. It's the biggest game of the season.
Don't take our word for it, though. Crystal240 was kind enough to show her work. Here's a timeline of where the crap mantle has been this season.
| WINNER | LOSER | SCORE | DATE | CRAP MANTLE KEEPER |
| MTL | TOR | 3-1 | OCT 7 | MAPLE LEAFS |
| DET | TOR | 4-0 | OCT 9 | MAPLE LEAFS |
| OTT | TOR | 5-4 (SO) | OCT 10 | MAPLE LEAFS |
| TOR | CBJ | 6-3 | OCT 16 | BLUE JACKETS |
| CHI | CBJ | 4-1 | OCT 17 | BLUE JACKETS |
| NYI | CBJ | 4-0 | OCT 20 | BLUE JACKETS |
| MIN | CBJ | 3-2 | OCT 22 | BLUE JACKETS |
| CBJ | COL | 4-3 | OCT 24 | AVALANCHE |
| FLA | COL | 4-1 | OCT 27 | AVALANCHE |
| COL | TBL | 2-1 | OCT 29 | LIGHTNING |
| BOS | TBL | 3-1 | OCT 30 | LIGHTNING |
| TBL | CAR | 4-3 | NOV 1 | HURRICANES |
| DAL | CAR | 4-1 | NOV 6 | HURRICANES |
| CAR | OTT | 3-2 (OT) | NOV 7 | SENATORS |
| NSH | OTT | 7-5 | NOV 10 | SENATORS |
As you can see, the Columbus Blue Jackets' first win of the season, which was also John Tortorella's first win as their head coach, was a much bigger deal than we knew, since it also served to doff The Crap Mantle.
Also worth noting: the Colorado Avalanche are the lone Western Conference team to hold The Crap Mantle so far, and yes, we're aware that by handing it out to the season's first loser, we've given the trophy a West Coast bias. Don't care. It's not like it protects the teams out West that much. The Canucks will still have it by Thursday's end if they can't fend off the Senators' next attempt to get rid of it.
